LIVE from Radiance Apr. 21, 2023 - The Panama Canal - Canal au Niveau de la Mer

[twangster]

3 hours ago, njkruzer said:

Was this a ship tour or a private tour?

 

Ship tour - Amazing Cartagena Bay and Walled City

[njkruzer]

1 minute ago, twangster said:

 

Ship tour - Amazing Cartagena Bay and Walled City

Thanks.  We're signed up one with Dora.  

[twangster]

As @little britain mentioned one of the cool aspects of the Cartagena cruise port is the mini-zoo / aviary that you walk through to get back to the ship.  It's complimentary.

 

 

It's hard for me not to take pictures in such close proximity to the animals with their vibrant colors.

 

Ant Eater:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[twangster]

Time for a cerveza, or two.

 

 

$2 and $4 respectively.  

[twangster]

A Peacock walked into a bar...

 

 

The birds and some other animals are roaming freely.  As I was drinking my beer a monkey jumped on my table.  Seeing no food he moved on.  

 

"Is my order ready?"

 

 

Edited April 26, 2023 by twangster

[twangster]

There is a souvenir shop here as well, a last chance to grab something Columbian.

 

 

 

They have coffee here as well.

 

 

 

They are $25 USD each.

 

Here is what I picked up in the walled city.

 

 

I paid $33 USD total for all three.  They are the same!

 

One is dated Oct. 2023 while the other two are dated Apr. 2024.

 

Edited April 26, 2023 by twangster

[twangster]

From here it is a short walk back to the ship.  They offer a free shuttle.

 

 

 

 

[Merion_Mom]

10 minutes ago, twangster said:

There is a souvenir shop here as well, a last chance to grab something Columbian.

 

 

 

And it is delightfully air conditioned!  😄 

[twangster]

Think we're having a Starlink moment.  Internet coming and going.

 

PING 4.2.2.3 (4.2.2.3): 56 data bytes

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--- 4.2.2.3 ping statistics ---

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round-trip min/avg/max/stddev = 196.622/4924.848/11806.571/3358.292 ms

[Cruiselyne]

52 minutes ago, twangster said:

 

Ship tour - Amazing Cartagena Bay and Walled City

Did you enjoy the tour?  I have it booked for next year but doesn't seem very appealing to me.

[twangster]

33 minutes ago, Cruiselyne said:

Did you enjoy the tour?  I have it booked for next year but doesn't seem very appealing to me.

 

It was a little too guided for me.  I'm glad I did the harbor tour just to see Cartagena from a different perspective but I wouldn't do it again.  

[Cruiselyne]

2 minutes ago, twangster said:

 

It was a little too guided for me.  I'm glad I did the harbor tour just to see Cartagena from a different perspective but I wouldn't do it again.  

Would taking a taxi to the old town be a better option?  This is my first time in Cartagena and not sure what to do.

[twangster]

Let's try this again.  Starlink has been giving me issues uploading these PDFs, so I went for a swim.  Here goes attempt # 4.

 

Day 6 Cruise Compass

 

RD Day 6 cruisecompass.pdf

 

Day 7 Cruise Compass

 

RD Day 7 cruisecompass.pdf

[twangster]

Just now, Cruiselyne said:

Would taking a taxi to the old town be a better option?  This is my first time in Cartagena and not sure what to do.

 

There is more to Cartagena than just the old, walled city.  You could consider a tour that visits many attractions, the Hop On Hop Off bus that visits the same attractions minus a guide and admission fees where there are any, or it is easy to spend several hours in the walled city.

 

My first time I did an organized tour and learned a lot.  This time my plan was a taxi or HOHO bus, but the water tour of the bay drew me to this attraction.   

 

Many around the city have some english skills but a lot do not.  If navigating through a foreign language doesn't appeal to you then consider a tour.  If you are the type that can figure out a few language barriers then doing it on your own, with some research before, it very doable.   

[twangster]

And we're off...

 

 

Next stop, Colon. 

 

Captain reports tomorrow's weather should be similar to today. 

[little britain]

49 minutes ago, twangster said:

 

It was a little too guided for me.  I'm glad I did the harbor tour just to see Cartagena from a different perspective but I wouldn't do it again.  

How much was it? Compared to my $15 cab ride for 2 DIY?! 

Edited April 26, 2023 by little britain

[twangster]

4 minutes ago, little britain said:

How much was it? Compared to my $15 cab ride for 2 DIY?! 

 

Yes, but did you take a tour of the bay? 🤣

[twangster]

Another look at The Protector. 

 

 

[little britain]

9 minutes ago, twangster said:

 

Yes, but did you take a tour of the bay? 🤣

The ships captain is doing that for us now lol 😆 

[CruiseMomTX]

1 hour ago, Cruiselyne said:

Would taking a taxi to the old town be a better option?  This is my first time in Cartagena and not sure what to do.

Book a tour with Dora it was fantastic!

[CruiseMomTX]

5 hours ago, Merion_Mom said:

In 2019 I did PC both ways, first westbound then eastbound (then TA and Med) on the Jewel, Radiance's sister ship.

 

On the first, after a tour in Cartagena (private, arranged by the wonderful Lee, a.k.a. Mr Emerald, an ex-pat from Minnesota), before we returned to the ship, I saw this party boat out in the harbor.  They were having SO.MUCH.FUN. when I got back to the ship, I asked about it, and booked it for the next cruise.  OMG.  BEYOND so much fun!  A real highlight of my cruising experience!  

 

It was also the easiest way to return to the ship!  😄 

@Merion_Mom was the party boat tour a ship or independent tour?  Sounds fun if you have any more information on it.

[twangster]

Chops for dinner tonight.  I may not be dining with Mary, but I may have a little Lamb tonight. 

 

Chops price on board is $52.99 for dinner, $26.99 for lunch. 

[twangster]

Tomorrow is Colon and a port to book an excursion. 

 

My excursion focuses on the new locks. 

 

 

 

 

If we start at the Miraflores locks we must drive there so I'm looking forward to seeing the area from the ground. 

Edited April 26, 2023 by twangster

[twangster]

Chops update - the Truffle Fries were truffled! 

[little britain]

Because Colon lives up to its name ( think about it) we are also going on a ship’s tour- and we never do ship’s tours. 
We are off to see the indigenous Embera people with a trip in a dug out canoe 🛶 .

The cost to book on board is $114pp. 

Edited April 27, 2023 by little britain